Bee an Arts Champion

2021 honoree, Ashley Cornelius
The Bee an Arts Champion Award, presented by the Bee Vradenburg Foundation, honors the legacy of Bee Vradenburg by recognizing individuals who have demonstrated sustained, passionate and innovative leadership toward advancing the arts in the Pikes Peak region. The award includes an honorary grant to an organization of the recipient’s choice.
Ashley Cornelius has already left an indelible mark on our community and she’s just getting started. Ashley is the Co-Director of Poetry 719, winner of the Colorado Springs Independent, “Best Colorado Springs Artist” award, and was recently named Pikes Peak Poet Laureate among many other accomplishments. She has an innate ability to use art to confront important and challenging conversations like LGBTQ+ rights, racial equity, and body positivity by speaking truth and inviting others in to join the conversation. Ashley proves the adage that art creates community, but she takes it a step further, showing us all how art can change the world.
Past Winners
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2020
Peggy Shivers
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2019
Brett Andrus and Lauren Ciborowski
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2018
Sharon Friedman
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2017
Sally Hybl
Murray and Betty Ross
Pam Shockley Zalabak -
2016
Gary Nicholson
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2015
Jan Martin
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2014
Lawrence Leighton Smith
Daisy McGowan -
2013
Ed and Mary Osborne
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2012
Steve Wood
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2011
Jan Johnson
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2010
Jim Jackson
Birgitta De Pree -
2009
Thomas Wilson
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2008
David Siegel
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2007
Matt Mayberry
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2006
Henry Tippie